What are some symptoms that some Bytesize Sessions are needed?

  • It is clear that people in the team have an incorrect mental model of the system or that the mental model they have is incongruent with other people in the team
  • When design decisions need to be made, there is only one person talking. No one else “knows enough” to contribute even with questions
  • When design decisions need to be made, discussion takes forever and no decision is made (this can be reflected as changing decision or no one “remembers what we decided in the end”)
  • The team has changed a lot or is mostly formed of new people

How did this format originate?

I started with Bytesized Architecture Sessions around 2017. At the heart of the sessions is the Alone Together time. A short time when everyone in the session works separately and quietly on the same modelling task.

After many sessions, people asked me to write about it. I thought it wasn’t necessary because it’s so simple. Then, I realised how often I use and recommend the Pomodoro technique with the added advantage that this coordinates a team of people.